And to thee, and thy company, I bid
A hearty welcome.

Alon.

Whe'r thou beest he, or no,

Or some enchanted devil' to abuse me,

As late I have been, I not know: thy pulse

Beats as of flesh and blood; and, since I saw thee,
Th' affliction of my mind amends, with which,

I fear, a madness held me.

This must crave

(An if this be at all) a most strange story.

Thy dukedom I resign; and do entreat

Thou pardon me thy wrongs.-But how should Prospero Be living, and be here ?

Pro.

First, noble friend,

Let me embrace thine age, whose honour cannot

Be measur'd, or confin'd.

Gon.

Or be not, I'll not swear.

Whether this be,

You do yet taste

Pro. Some subtleties o' the isle, that will not let you Believe things certain.-Welcome, my friends all.— But you, my brace of lords, were I so minded,

[Aside to SEB. and ANT. I here could pluck his highness' frown upon you, And justify you traitors: at this time

I will tell no tales.

Seb. [Aside.]

The devil speaks in him.

Pro.
For you, most wicked sir, whom to call brother
Would even infect my mouth, I do forgive
Thy rankest faults2; all of them; and require
My dukedom of thee, which, perforce, I know
Thou must restore.

Alon.

If thou beest Prospero,

Give us particulars of thy preservation :

No.

How thou hast met us here, who three hours since
Were wreck'd upon this shore; where I have lost,
(How sharp the point of this remembrance is !)
My dear son Ferdinand.

Pro.

I am woe for 't, sir.

Alon. Irreparable is the loss, and patience Says it is past her cure.

Pro.

I rather think,

You have not sought her help; of whose soft grace,

1 trifle in f. e. 2 fault: in f. e.

For the like loss I have her sovereign aid,
And rest myself content.

Alon.

You the like loss?

Pro. As great to me, as late; and, supportable

To make the dear loss, have I means much weaker Than you may call to comfort you, for I

Have lost my daughter.

Alon.

A daughter?

O heavens! that they were living both in Naples,
The king and queen there! that they were, I wish
Myself were mudded in that oozy bed

Where my son lies. When did you lose your daughter? Pro. In this last tempest. I perceive, these lords

At this encounter do so much admire,

That they devour their reason, and scarce think
Their eyes do offices of truth, their words
Are natural breath; but, howsoe'er you have
Been justled from your senses, know for certain,
That I am Prospero, and that very duke

Which was thrust forth of Milan; who most strangely
Upon this shore, where you were wreck'd, was landed,
To be the lord on 't. No more yet of this;

For 't is a chronicle of day by day,

Not a relation for a breakfast, nor

Befitting this first meeting. Welcome, sir;

This cell's my court: here have I few attendants,
And subjects none abroad: pray you, look in.
My dukedom since you have given me again,
I will requite you with as good a thing;

At least, bring forth a wonder, to content ye
As much as me my dukedom.

PROSPERO draws a curtain,1 and discovers FERDINAND and MIRANDA playing at chess.

Mira. Sweet lord, you play me false.

Fer.

I would not for the world.

No, my dearest love,

Mira. Yes, for a score of kingdoms you should

1 The entrance of the cell opens, and: in f. e. VOL. I.-6

Fer. Though the seas threaten they are merciful:
I have curs'd them without cause. [Kneels to ALON.
Alon.
Now, all the blessings

Of a glad father compass thee about!
Arise, and say how thou cam'st here.

Mira.

O, wonder! How many goodly creatures are there here! How beauteous mankind is! O, brave new world, That has such people in't!

Pro.

'Tis new to thee.

Alon. What is this maid, with whom thou wast at

play?

Your eld'st acquaintance cannot be three hours:

Is she the goddess that hath sever'd us,
And brought us thus together?

Fer.

She

Sir, she is mortal; But, by immortal providence, she's mine: I chose her, when I could not ask my father For his advice, nor thought I had one. Is daughter to this famous duke of Milan, Of whom so often I have heard renown, But never saw before; of whom I have Received a second life, and second father This lady makes him to me.

Alon.

I am hers. But O! how oddly will it sound, that I Must ask my child forgiveness.

Pro.

Let us not burden our remembrances

With a heaviness that's gone.

Gon.

There, sir, stop:

I have inly wept,

Or should have spoke ere this. Look down, you gods,

And on this couple drop a blessed crown,

For it is you that have chalk'd forth the way,

Which brought us hither!

Alon.

I say, Amen, Gonzalo.

Gon. Was Milan thrust from Milan, that his issue Should become kings of Naples ? O! rejoice

Beyond a common joy, and set it down

With gold on lasting pillars. In one voyage
Did Claribel her husband find at Tunis;
And Ferdinand, her brother, found a wife,
Where he himself was lost; Prospero his dukedom,
In a poor isle; and all of us, ourselves,

When no man was his own.

Alon. Give me your hands:

[To FER. and MIR.

Let grief and sorrow still embrace his heart,
That doth not wish you joy!

Gon.

Be it so Amen.

Re-enter ARIEL, with the Master and Boatswain
amazedly following.

O look, sir! look, sir! here are more of us.
I prophesied, if a gallows were on land,

This fellow could not drown.-Now, blasphemy,
That swear'st grace o'erboard, not an oath on shore?
Hast thou no mouth by land? What is the news?

Boats. The best news is, that we have safely found Our king, and company: the next, our ship, Which but three glasses since we gave out split, Is tight, and yare, and bravely rigg'd, as when We first put out to sea.

Ari.

Have I done since I went.

Sir, all this service [Aside.

Pro.
My tricksy spirit! [Aside.
Alon. These are not natural events; they strengthen
From strange to stranger.-Say, how came you hither?
Boats. If I did think, sir, I were well awake,
I'd strive to tell you. We were dead of sleep,
And (how we know not) all clapp'd under hatches,
Where, but even now, with strange and several noises
Of roaring, shrieking, howling, jingling chains,
And more diversity of sounds, all horrible,
We were awak'd; straightway, at liberty:
Where we, in all her trim, freshly beheld
Our royal, good, and gallant ship; our master
Capering to eye her on a trice, so please you,
Even in a dream, were we divided from them,
And were brought moping hither.

Ari.
Was 't well done?
Pro. Bravely, my diligence! Thou shalt Aside.

be free.

Alon. This is as strange a maze as e'er men trod; And there is in this business more than nature

Was ever conduct of: some oracle

Must rectify our knowledge.

Pro.

Sir, my liege,

Do not infest your mind with beating on

The strangeness of this business: at pick'd leisure,

Which shall be shortly, single I'll resolve you
(Which to you shall seem probable) of every
These happen'd accidents; till when, be cheerful,
And think of each thing well.-Come hither, spirit:

Set Caliban and his companions free;
Untie the spell. [Ex. ARIEL.]

sir?

[Aside.

How fares my gracious

There are yet missing of your company

Some few odd lads, that you remember not.

Re-enter ARIEL, driving in CALIBAN, STEPHANO, and TRINCULO, in their stolen apparel.

Ste. Every man shift for all the rest, and let no man take care for himself, for all is but fortune.-Coragio ! bully-monster, coragio!

Trin. If these be true spies which I wear in my head, here's a goodly sight.

Cal. O Setebos! these be brave spirits, indeed. How fine my master is! I am afraid

He will chastise me.

Seb.

Ha, ha !

What things are these, my lord Antonio?
Will money buy them?

Ant.
Very like one of them
Is a plain fish, and, no doubt, marketable.

Pro. Mark but the badges of these men, my lords
Then say, if they be true.-This mis-shapen knave,
His mother was a witch; and one so strong
That could control the moon, make flows and ebbs,
And deal in her command with all1 her power.
These three have robb'd me; and this demi-devil
(For he's a bastard one) had plotted with them
To take my life: two of these fellows you
Must know, and own; this thing of darkness I
Acknowledge mine.

Cal.
I shall be pinch'd to death.
Alon. Is not this Stephano, my drunken butler ?

Seb. He is drunk now: where had he wine?

Alon. And Trinculo is reeling ripe: where should

they

Find this grand liquor that hath gilded 'em ?

How cam'st thou in this pickle ?

Trin. I have been in such a pickle, since I saw you

1 without in f. e.